Italian Language/basso

Can you please tell me if there are any special rules for the placement of the adjective “basso”.

My dictionary states that the adjective “basso” means “low” or “short”. Does the meaning of the adjective “basso” change depending on whether “basso” is placed before the noun or after the noun? I was wondering if the adjective “basso” is like the adjective “alto” in this regard.

Thank you so much for all of your help.

Sincerely,

Rich

ANSWER: Dear Rich,

the adjective “basso” means “short” when it is used to describe how short someone or something is, as in “E’ basso e magro” or “Era uno degli edifici più bassi in quella strada”, while it means “low” when it is used to indicate that something is under the usual level as in “Il prezzo era davvero basso”, “Parlava a voce bassa”, “L’aereo volava basso”, L’acqua era bassa”.

In short, the adjective “basso” does not change meaning ( short/ low) depending on whether it is placed before the noun or after the noun, but depending on its sense in a context.

So, as you can see, we can use “basso” either before the noun or after the noun, independently from the fact that it corresponds to “short” or “low”, while in English “low” and ”short” are used before the noun, just like the other adjectives .

Would you please tell me if the following translations are correct or not:

E’ basso e magro.
He is short and thin.

Era uno degli edifici più bassi in quella strada.
It was one of the shorter buildings on that street.

Il prezzo era davvero basso.
The price was really low.

Parlava a voce bassa.
He talked in a low voice.

L’aereo volava basso.
The airplane flew low.

L’acqua era bassa.
The water was low.

Aveva una voce bassa.
He had a low voice.

Ha un basso livello di istruzione.
He has a low level of training.

Ha un livello di istruzione molto basso.
He has a very low level of training.

La sua bassa statura lo angustia.
His low stature distresses him.

La sua statura bassa lo angustiava.
His low stature distressed him.

Thank you

Sincerely,

Rich

ANSWER: Dear Rich,

your translations are correct, apart the word “training” instead of “education” as "istruzione" denotes the process of learning in a school or college, or the knowledge that you get from this.

Therefore you should have said “He has a low level of education” and “He has a very low level of education”.

Best regards,

Maria

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Maria,

Thank you, once again, for your help with this question. I very much appreciate your checking and correcting my translations.

I used the word “training” because I thought that the word “educazione” would have been used to mean “education”? Due to my limited experience, “istruzione” sounded more like “instruction” or “training” rather than “education”.

So, I now realize that I do not know the difference between “educazione” and “istruzione”.

Can you please explain the difference between “istruzione” (education) and “educazione” (education).

I am trying very hard to understand the difference between “educazione” and “istruzione”. It would also help me very much if you would please tell me what the difference is between the following sentences:
“Ha un basso livello di educazione” and “Ha un basso livello di istruzione”

Thank you

Sincerely,

Rich

AnswerDear Rich,

first of all the difference between the sentences: “Ha un basso livello di educazione” and “Ha un basso livello di istruzione” is that the Italian noun “educazione” means “manners/ good manners/polite behaviour”, as polite ways of treating other people and behaving in public, whereas “istruzione” means “education” as the process of learning in a school or college and the knowledge that you get from this.

So, as you can see, the sentences “Ha un basso livello di educazione” and “Ha un basso livello di istruzione” are different, for the former refers to a polite behaviour, the latter to the knowledge that one gets from studies while one is at a college or university .

As for your translation “He has a low level of training”, it would correspond to “Ha un basso livello di addestramento” or “Ha un basso livello di formazione professionale”, with reference to the skills you need to do a particular job or activity.
Also,“He has a low level of training” can mean “Ha un basso livello di allenamento”, where "allenamento" refers to one who is in training for a competition and is exercising in a way that prepares him for it.

Hope this is clear enough.

Best,

Maria
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P.S.
In Italian we use the plural "istruzioni" in the sense of advice and information about how to do or use something.
For example:
-"Non hai letto bene le istruzioni" (You didn't read the instructions properly).
-"Loro hanno bisogno di istruzioni chiare su ciò che devono fare" (They need clear instructions on what to do next)
-"Il video fornisce istruzioni su come usare il computer" (The video provides instruction on how to operate the computer)

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Comment

Dear Maria,
Thank you very much for this great answer to my question about the meaning of the words “educazione” and “istruzione”. I really appreciate the great explanation you gave me about the meaning of these words along with the many example sentences. This all has helped me very much. I also especially appreciate the way you also explained the meaning of the plural form “istruzioni” as well as the usage of - “addestramento”, “formazione professionale”, and “allenamento”.
Thank you very, very much.
Sincerely,
Rich